UNJVT 
ILLINOIS  L 

BOOKST; 


Sit  HJemortam 


X855-X025 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2013 


http://archive.org/details/memorialoffuneraOOurba 


Edmund  Janes  James.  Ph.D.,  LL.D. 
1855-1925 


3  Mtt    :.   .     :;  .**,,  *'£,  .-■• 


4  t» 

t'rnan-; 


Mvmmxul  nf  tfyv  Wttntml 
§em% t$&  for 

iflourtl?  PrustJasni  of  tlj*  -llmtt* rsffg  of  Illinois 
1304-1320 


MI  THE 

AN     5  ih26 

JLUHOJS 

itniurrsitu  of  Hit nois  Altai torfunt 

ffflonoay,  June  22,  1925 

4  o'rloch 

IU  liana,  Illinois 


jEhmnnfc  Hunt*  Kam*s 

Doctor  Edmund  Janes  James,  fourth  President  of  the 
University  of  Illinois,  was  born  on  May  21,  1855  at  Jack- 
sonville, Illinois,  the  son  of  Reverend  Colin  Dew  James 
and  Mrs.  Amanda  Keziah  Casad  James.  Following  his 
early  education  at  the  Illinois  State  Normal  University,  he 
attended  Northwestern  and  Harvard  Universities  in  1873 
and  1874.  In  1875  he  entered  the  University  of  Halle  in 
Germany  where  he  received  the  degree  of  Doctor  of 
Philosophy  in  1877. 

Following  his  return  to  the  United  States  he  served 
successively  as  Principal  of  the  Evanston,  Illinois,  High 
School  and  as  Professor  of  Latin  and  Greek  and  Principal 
of  the  High  School  Department  at  the  Illinois  State 
Normal  University. 

In  1879  he  was  married  to  Miss  Anna  Margarethe 
Lange  of  Halle,  Prussia,  whom  he  met  while  studying  at 
the  University  there.  The  three  children  born  to  this 
union — Anthony  John  James,  U.  S.  N.,  Dr.  Herman  Ger- 
lach  James,  and  Helen  Dickson  James  (Mrs.  George 
Frazer) — are  living.   Mrs.  James  died  in  1914  at  Urbana. 

In  1883,  Dr.  James  again  went  to  Europe,  this  time 
for  a  year  for  the  American  Bankers'  Association  to  make 
a  study  of  commercial  education  abroad.  On  his  return 
home  he  became  Professor  of  Public  Finance  and  Admin- 
istration at  the  University  of  Pennsylvania.  There  he 
organized  and  for  twelve  years  directed  the  Wharton 
School  of  Finance  and  Economics.  He  also  was  Secretary 
of  the  Graduate  Faculty,  and  organized  the  instruction  in 
that  branch. 

Leaving  the  University  of  Pennsylvania  in  1896,  he 
went  to  the  University  of  Chicago  where  for  six  years  he 
served  as  professor  of  Public  Administration  and  as 
Director  of  University  Extension.  In  1902  he  became 
President  of  Northwestern  University,  serving  there  until 

•4  3}- 


1904  when  he  became  President  of  the  University  of 
Illinois.  Here  he  served  for  the  last  sixteen  years  of  his 
public  life. 

During  the  last  several  years  of  his  Presidency  at  the 
University  of  Illinois,  and  especially  during  the  World 
War,  President  James  worked  under  such  great  pressure 
that  early  in  1919  his  health  began  to  fail.  He  asked  the 
Trustees  to  permit  him  to  resign  but  they  persuaded  him 
to  take  a  fifteen  months'  leave  of  absence  in  order  that  he 
might  recover  his  health  and  return  to  active  service.  But 
some  months  later,  feeling  that  his  health  would  not  permit 
him  to  return,  President  James  again  asked  the  Board  of 
Trustees  to  accept  his  resignation.  In  accepting  it,  the 
Board  made  him  President,  Emeritus. 

During  the  last  five  or  six  years  of  his  life,  President 
James  lived  mostly  in  California.  His  health  improved 
somewhat  following  his  retirement  but  later  began  to  fail 
again  and  he  passed  away  at  the  home  of  his  sister  in 
Covina,  California  on  June  17,  1925.  Public  funeral 
services  were  held  in  the  Auditorium  of  the  University  of 
Illinois — the  building  which  was  one  of  his  dreams  realized 
and  which  is  one  of  the  monuments  to  his  career — and  he 
was  laid  to  rest  beside  the  grave  of  his  wife  in  Mount  Hope 
cemetery  in  Urbana. 

No  short  biographical  sketch  such  as  this  must  be 
could  begin  to  do  justice  to  a  life  so  full  of  service,  to  a 
character  so  noble,  and  to  a  career  so  full  of  achievement 
as  that  of  President  James.  In  addition  to  his  services  in 
educational  institutions,  he  was  actively  identified 
throughout  his  career  with  numerous  commissions  and 
agencies  for  the  advancement  of  education,  science,  and 
public  administration.  His  achievements  were  duly  recog- 
nized by  the  many  honors  conferred  on  him  by  institutions 
of  learning  and  governmental  agencies.  He  was  a  member 
of  numerous  learned  societies  and  other  similar  organiza- 
tions. His  contributions  to  the  literature  of  education  and 
of  political  science  are  many.  He  has  left  behind  a  great 
influence  on  education  which  will  be  as  lasting  as  the  lives 
of  the  institutions  which  he  served. 


®tj£  (father  of  tlje  §2tvxc2& 


Processional — "Dead  March"  from  "Saul" Handel 

Choir— "For  All  the  Saints" Barnby 


Prayer  Reverend  James  C.  Baker,  D.D. 

Pastor,  Trinity  Methodist-Episcopal  Church,  Urbana 


Choir — "Trust  in  the  Lord"  (arranged  from  "Largo") Handel 

Address  Reverend  James  C.  Baker,  D.D. 


Address  David  Kinley,  Ph.D.,  LL.D. 

President  of  the  University 


Choir— "Lead  Kindly  Light"  (Newman) Dykes 

Benediction 

Choir — "Nunc  Dimittis"    Barnby 

Recessional — "Funeral  March  on  the  Death  of  a  Hero".  .  .Beethoven 


i  s  }- 


Honorary  Pallbearers 

Honorable  Len  Small,  Governor  of  Illinois 
Dr.  William  L.  Noble,  President  of  the  Board  of  Trustees 
Honorable  William  B.  McKinley,  U.  S.  Senator  from  Illinois 
Honorable  Charles  S.  Deneen,  U.  S.  Senator  from  Illinois 
Honorable  Henry  M.  Dunlap  of  Savoy,  State  Senator 
Honorable  Francis  G.  Blair,  State  Superintendent  of 

Public  Instruction 
Honorable  William  L.  Abbott,  former  President  of  the 

Board  of  Trustees 
Honorable  Robert  F.  Carr,  former  President  of  the  Board 

of  Trustees 
Honorable  Samuel  A.  Bullard,  Mayor  of  Springfield,  Illinois, 

former  President  of  the  Board  of  Trustees 
President  David  Felmley,  Illinois  State  Normal  University 
President  Walter  Dill  Scott,  Northwestern  University 
President  Harry  Pratt  Judson,  former  President  of  the 

University  of  Chicago 
Dean  Thomas  Franklin  Holgate,  former  President  of 

Northwestern  University 
Professor  James  H.  Breasted  of  the  University  of  Chicago 
Honorable  Otis  W.  Hoit  of  Geneseo,  Illinois 
Honorable  Eugene  Funk  of  Shirley,  Illinois 
Honorable  George  J.  Babb,  Mayor  of  Champaign 
Honorable  William  F.  Burres,  Mayor  of  Urbana 
Honorable  John  C.  Shaffer,  Publisher  of  the  Chicago 

Evening  Post 
Honorable  James  A.  Patten  of  Evanston,  Illinois 
Honorable  Edward  Lewis  Scheidenhelm,  President  of  the  Univer- 
sity of  Illinois  Alumni  Association 
Dean    Albert    Chauncey    Eycleshymer,    University    of    Illinois 

College  of  Medicine 
Professor  Lorado  Taft,  Dr.  Charles  Davison,  Judge  Oliver 
Albert  Harker,  Professor  Stephen  Alfred  Forbes,  Professor 
Charles  Wesley  Rolfe,  Professor  Charles  Melville  Moss, 
Professor  Samuel  Wilson  Parr,  Professor  Ira  Osborne  Baker, 
Professor  Arthur  Newell  Talbot, — all  of  the  University  of 
Illinois. 

-{  6  }- 


Active  Pallbearers 

Dean  Edward  Joseph  Filbey 
Honorable  Hazen  S.  Capron 
Honorable  Cyrus  N.  Clark 
Professor  Joseph  Cullen  Blair 
Professor  George  Alfred  Goodenough 
Director  Phineas  Lawrence  Windsor 


i  7  ¥ 


Prag*r 

Almighty  God — our  dwelling  place  in  all  genera- 
tions— Who  alone  art  the  Author  and  Disposer  of  our  life, 
from  Whom  our  Spirits  have  come,  to  Whom  they  shall 
return,  in  Whom  they  abide:  in  this  solemn  hour  we 
worship  Thee. 

Thou  art  the  Eternal  Lover  of  our  Souls,  our  Refuge, 
the  Consolation  of  the  sorrowful,  the  support  of  the  weary. 
Look  in  tender  love  and  pity,  we  beseech  Thee,  upon  Thy 
bereaved  servants,  whose  joy  is  turned  into  mourning. 
Lift  up  the  light  of  Thy  countenance  upon  them  and  give 
them  peace.  Thou  dost  bring  life  out  of  death  and  canst 
turn  grief  into  Eternal  Joy. 

Enable  us  all  to  put  our  trust  in  Thee  and  grant  us 
the  comfort  of  Thy  presence  that  through  the  night  of 
sorrow  we  may  walk  with  Thee  until  the  daybreak  and  the 
shadows  flee  away. 

At  this  hour  we  remember  with  solemn  thanksgiving 
and  exalted  joy  thy  servant — our  friend — who  has  ex- 
changed this  mortal  tabernacle  for  that  house  not  made 
with  hands  eternal  in  the  heavens. 

We  are  deeply  grateful  for  his  character  and  spirit, 
his  wise  mind,  his  tender  and  deep  heart,  his  valiant  will, 
his  steadfast  patience,  his  sensitive  conscience,  his  beau- 
tiful faith  in  human  nature,  his  quiet  reliance  upon  Thee 
thus  joining  time  to  Eternity  and  feeling  the  pulse  beat 
within  him  of  an  everlasting  life. 

We  give  Thee  hearty  thanks  for  all  Thy  saints  who 
from  their  labors  rest.  We  would  renew  in  this  hour  all  fair 
and  noble  memories,  all  high  and  holy  traditions  of  the 
days  that  are  no  more.  Oh  that  silent  and  beautiful  King- 
dom in  which  we  see  the  fair  and  lovely  lives  who  made 
experience  rich  for  us,  with  the  light  upon  them  that  comes 
from  Thy  approving  face  and  Thy  joy  in  them.  Gather 
and  kindle  their  power  in  our  hearts.    Give  us  grace  to 

-{  8  }■ 





follow  their  good  example,  to  hold  our  inheritance  a 
solemn  trust  that  even  here  we  may  be  united  to  them  in 
fellowship  of  spirit  and  be  partakers  even  now  with  them 
of  Thy  heavenly  Kingdom. 

These  things,  our  Father,  we  ask  in  the  Name  of  Jesus 
Christ,  who  brought  life  and  Immortality  to  light.    Amen. 


i  9  }- 


Address 

Reverend  James  C.  Baker,  D.D. 

"Out  of  the  abundance  of  the  heart,  the  mouth 
speaketh,"  and  if  the  abounding  sorrow  and  earnest  love 
in  the  heart  of  this  community  for  President  James  this 
day  could  be  made  vocal,  the  result  would  be  deeply 
moving  and  beautiful.  It  is  exceedingly  difficult  to  speak 
in  measured  terms.  A  great  brightness  has  passed  out  of 
our  lives  and  an  inspiring  voice  is  hushed.  The  cords  of  a 
long  cherished  fellowship  are  broken.  A  service  of  pro- 
found distinction  and  immeasurable  value  to  this  Univer- 
sity, to  this  Commonwealth,  and  to  the  world,  is  ended. 
We  are  together  in  gratitude  and  in  immortal  hope. 

We  are  Dr.  James'  debtors  more  than  we  can  say.  He 
was  our  counselor  and  friend.  The  days  in  his  company 
were  among  the  great  days  of  life.  Many  an  ideal  which 
we  cherished  was  kindled  at  his  fire.  To  think  of  him  has 
always  steadied  and  inspired  us.  He  can  not  become  a 
fading  memory.  He  will  remain  a  living  and  vitalizing 
presence;  fruitful  in  enlightenment  and  inspiration. 

And  those  of  us  who  were  privileged  to  enjoy  with 
some  intimacy  his  friendship  can  only  thank  God  for  so 
great  a  gift. 

The  story  of  Edmund  J.  James'  life  is  a  record  of 
noble  struggle,  high  achievement,  rich  experience,  happy 
service,  remarkable  and  enduring  influence.  President 
Kinley  will  speak  of  his  academic  ideals  and  accomplish- 
ments and  his  epoch-marking  services  to  the  University  of 
Illinois  and  to  education.  It  is  my  privilege  to  speak  of 
some  of  his  personal  qualities. 

I  attempt  my  difficult  task  realizing  that  you  will  be 
busy  with  your  own  recollections  and  will  fill  in  for  your- 
selves the  gaps  in  my  inadequate  words.  But  perhaps  I 
will  have  served  you  well  if  I  can  help  to  awaken  some  of 
the  good  angels  of  memory. 

-{10}- 


President  James  had  a  remarkable  range  of  interests. 
He  touched  knowledge  and  experience  at  many  points.  He 
moved  in  a  spacious  world.  He  lived  a  spacious  life.  This 
was  one  of  the  reasons  for  his  engaging  dignity  and  lofty 
personal  bearing. 

Dr.  James  believed  that  it  was  truly  the  function  of  a 
university  to  take  all  knowledge  for  its  province,  and  to 
exalt  all  great  human  values.  Into  the  various  fields  of 
research  and  endeavor  in  which  other  men  worked  as 
specialists,  his  trained  mind  penetrated  with  sympathy, 
imagination,  and  understanding.  They  felt  that  his  inter- 
est was  not  perfunctory  and  superficial  but  deep  and 
genuine.  I  have  heard  men  working  in  the  most  diverse 
and  widely  separated  departments  of  the  University  speak 
with  gratitude  and  even  amazement  of  the  warm  apprecia- 
tion of  the  President  for  what  they  were  doing  and  the 
counsel  and  encouragement  they  gained  from  him.  No 
wonder  that  in  a  time  of  great  crisis  for  our  University  the 
faculty  gave  Dr.  James  an  unprecedented  and  overwhelm- 
ing vote  of  confidence! 

The  breadth  of  President  James'  life  is  further  illus- 
trated in  the  special  significance  which  he  saw  in  aesthetic 
and  humanistic  interests  such  as  art,  music,  and  religion, 
especially  in  a  university  so  largely  concerned  with  the 
utilitarian  applications  of  science  and  knowledge.  He 
sought  to  foster  music  in  this  institution.  He  was  a  great 
lover  of  music  himself.  (The  choir  has  just  sung  an 
anthem  adapted  to  Handel's  "Largo"  because  the  "Largo" 
was  a  piece  of  music  he  could  never  hear  often  enough.) 
Through  his  planning  the  organ  was  placed  in  the  Audi- 
torium. (Its  first  use  was  at  the  funeral  of  Mrs.  James.) 
He  inaugurated  the  Symphony  Concerts  and  built  the 
Music  Hall. 

Religion  he  also  knew  to  be  one  of  the  sovereign  in- 
terests of  humanity,  and  that  an  education  without  religion 
was  incomplete.  Recognizing  the  limitations  in  this  field 
of  a  state  university,  he  stepped  off  the  campus  to  en- 
courage the  fostering  of  this  interest  through  the  churches 

-fu}- 


and  foundations.  He  was  not  narrow  or  sectarian  in  his 
outlook,  but  was  eager  to  have  Catholic,  Protestant,  and 
Jew  minister  to  the  religious  nature  and  needs  of  their 
students.  He  was  also  tremendously  interested  in  the 
Christian  Associations.  To  all  he  gave  freely  and  gener- 
ously of  his  time,  his  counsel,  and  his  money.  It  is  difficult 
to  overstate  the  service  of  President  James  to  the  religious 
life  of  this  institution.  Some  of  us  who  are  engaged  in  this 
particular  field  of  endeavor  can  never  state  what  he  meant 
to  us,  personally,  nor  to  the  work  in  which  we  are  engaged. 

ii 

President  James  was  one  of  the  most  magnanimous — 
"great-minded" — men  I  have  ever  known.  He  was  quick  to 
give  recognition  where  recognition  was  due,  and  rejoiced 
in  the  achievements  of  every  man  in  the  faculty.  He  played 
no  favorites;  merit  always  had  quick  recognition  from 
him.  He  had  no  small  and  petty  jealousies  either  within 
the  University  life  or  in  relation  to  other  universities. 
When  a  sister  university  received  a  large  gift  for  a  special 
phase  of  its  work,  I  asked  him  what  effect  it  would  have  on 
similar  work  which  the  University  of  Illinois  was  develop- 
ing. In  a  perfectly  characteristic  way,  he  said:  "It  will 
help.  It  is  fine  to  have  gifts  of  that  sort.  No  institution 
prospers  without  helping  every  other  institution." 

Dr.  James  held  no  grudges  and  was  quick  to  forgive. 
There  was  a  large  humanity  about  him  which  helped  him 
to  see  his  opponent's  point  of  view  and  to  understand  the 
reasons  for  his  attitude  and  actions.  Consequently  he  had 
the  unusual  ability  of  keeping  the  personal  element  out  of 
all  controversy.  He  was  a  hard  fighter  for  things  he 
believed  in,  but  there  was  no  bitterness  in  his  spirit.  If  he 
was  defeated,  he  took  his  defeat  in  good  part,  and  if  victori- 
ous, he  did  not  use  his  added  strength  to  injure  those  who 
had  opposed  him.  He  was  entirely  free  from  vindicitive- 
ness,  even  when  he  had  been  personally  maligned  and 
abused. 

His  philosophy  was  the  philosophy  of  Abraham 
Lincoln :  "No  man  resolved  to  make  the  most  of  himself, 

{12^ 


can  spare  the  time  for  personal  contention.  Still  less  can 
he  afford  to  take  all  the  consequences,  including  the 
vitiating  of  his  temper,  and  the  loss  of  self-control.  ...  I 
shall  do  nothing  in  malice.  What  I  deal  with  is  too  vast  for 
malicious  dealing."  President  James  moved  on  a  level 
which  had  no  place  for  the  small  and  petty  controversies 
which  disturb  so  many  of  us. 

in 

President  James  had  a  profound  appreciation  of  the 
continuities  of  human  life  and  the  service  of  institutions 
like  the  University,  the  Church,  and  the  Home  in  preserv- 
ing these  continuities. 

The  University  to  him  was  a  part  of  the  great  society 
of  scholars;  to  use  Burke's  words  of  the  state  it  was  "a 
partnership,  past,  present  and  future."  The  sacred  strength 
of  unnumbered  lives  had  been  poured  into  it.  To  worthily 
enter  into  this  fellowship  was  an  elevated  and  lofty  calling. 
Who  that  ever  heard  him  welcome  graduates  into  the 
Alumni  group  can  forget  the  solemn  words  with  which  he 
stated  their  privileges  and  responsibilities.  His  own  share 
in  the  development  of  the  life  of  this  University  was  a 
source  of  continual  and  abounding  joy  to  him.  "It  was 
great  to  have  had  a  part  in  all  this,"  he  used  to  say. 

In  the  same  way  Dr.  James  respected  and  reverenced 
the  Church.  For  him  it  was  rich  with  the  sense  of  history — 
a  mighty  conserver  of  spiritual  ideals  and  mediator  of 
spiritual  power — an  effective  instrument  for  the  advance- 
ment of  the  kingdom  of  righteousness  and  love  in  the 
world.  When  a  group  of  ministers  called  upon  him  one 
day  to  express  their  appreciation  of  his  leadership,  he 
replied  to  them:  "Men  talk  today  of  how  the  church  is 
losing  its  hold  on  the  minds  and  hearts  of  men.  I  do  not 
find  it  so  from  my  watch  tower.  We  are  indeed  going 
through  a  period  of  transition  which  may  see  many  read- 
justments; but  the  clergy  of  the  country  today — taking 
them  in  the  large  including  Catholics,  Protestants,  and 
Jews — represent  in  the  aggregate  the  largest  and  most  in- 
fluential force  making  for  the  higher  life  and  for  righteous- 

i  13  >- 


ness  in  general  now  at  work  in  our  American  life.  They 
are  still  in  a  peculiar  sense  the  supporters  and  bearers  of 
the  spiritual  interest  of  society."  He  was  himself  a  loyal 
and  devoted  member  of  the  Church. 

And  the  Family — the  oldest  institution  of  the  world — 
how  President  James  reverenced  it !  In  1920  I  drove  him 
on  an  auto  trip  into  southern  Illinois — a  trip  ever  memor- 
able to  me — to  visit  the  neighborhood  where  his  mother 
had  lived  as  a  girl  and  to  see  the  old  burial  grounds  where 
were  the  graves  of  some  of  his  forbears.  When  a  young 
fellow  on  a  farm  where  some  of  these  graves  were  expressed 
wonder  that  anyone  should  be  interested  in  old  graves,  Dr. 
James'  quiet  observation  to  me  was  :  "Yes,  some  are  as  the 
beasts  that  perish."  In  his  later  years  he  accepted  trustee- 
ship at  Illinois  Woman's  College,  Jacksonville,  and  at 
Illinois  Wesleyan  University,  Bloomington,  because  of  his 
father's  early  connection  with  these  institutions.  Family 
memories  for  him  were  full  of  stimulus  and  power. 

To  hear  President  James  speak  of  his  rugged  and 
faithful  father  or  his  inspiring  and  beautiful  mother  was  to 
get  a  new  insight  into  his  rich  heart.  His  own  home  was  a 
glorious  romance  in  its  simplicity,  its  dignity,  its  tender- 
ness, and  its  constancy.  Up  from  the  altar  of  his  heart  rose 
"The  incense  of  a  love  that  burned 
Through  pain  and  doubt  defying  Time." 

The  beautiful  home  life  of  President  and  Mrs.  James 
was  of  the  kind  that  keeps  faith  in  the  dearest  and  best 
things  of  life,  clear  and  tender  and  true. 

IV 

Any  account  of  President  James  would  be  inadequate 
which  did  not  mention  the  vast  vitality  of  his  personality. 
He  had  the  kindling  capacity  of  a  great  creative  leader. 
Power  went  out  of  him  into  others.  To  meet  and  talk  with 
him  was  to  feel  yourself  hoisted  out  of  your  habitual 
mediocrities  and  set  upon  the  high  level  where  you  know 
you  should  dwell  but  where  you  find  it  hard  to  stay  for 
any  length  of  time. 

{14}- 


His  kindling  effect  upon  our  University  was  beauti- 
fully stated  by  Professor  Sherman  at  the  time  of  President 
James'  resignation :  "President  James  taught  us  to  be  dis- 
contented with  the  second  rate.  He  gave  us  a  permanent 
bias  toward  excellence  and  distinction.  He  made  us  all 
feel  that  courage,  serenity,  wisdom,  magnanimity,  and 
creative  imagination  were  at  work  in  his  administration, 
bringing  us  every  year  nearer  to  the  University  of  his 
vision  and  ours,  an  institution  in  the  grand  style,  the 
peer  of  the  oldest  and  most  renowned,  adequately  repre- 
senting the  resources  and  the  intellectual  energy  and  as- 
pirations of  a  great  commonwealth." 


President  James  was  a  deeply  religious  man.  His  fine 
moral  earnestness  was  inspired  and  sustained  by  a  great 
faith  in  God  the  Infinite  righteousness,  Love  and  Goodwill. 
He  used  to  say  to  me  about  great  causes:  "We  may  not 
see  their  success  nor  our  children.  But  they  will  prevail  in 
some  good  time.  'The  stars  in  their  courses  fight  for 
them.'  "  This  faith  gave  him  courage,  strength  and  hope 
for  his  task.  He  was  eager  to  understand  and  connect  with 
the  Divine  forces  of  the  world.  No  conviction  was  more 
deeply  imbedded  in  his  life  than  that  Powerful  Goodness 
is  at  the  heart  of  the  Universe  and  that  the  great  secret  of 
life  was  to  be  allied  with  God. 

"A  mighty  fortress  is  our  God 
A  bulwark  never  failing 
Our  helper  He,  amid  the  flood 
Of  mortal  ills  prevailing." 

This  was  the  great  dynamic  force  of  his  life,  the  source  of 
the  awe,  tenderness,  dignity  and  noble  humanity  that 
greatened  his  heart.  He  lifted  up  his  voice  in  praise  be- 
cause of  it.  Religion  illumined  for  him  his  loves  and  his 
friendships,  his  joys  and  his  sorrows,  his  duties  and  his 
trials — the  whole  glorious  round  of  his  existence. 


{15} 


In  the  power  of  his  faith  President  James  looked  in- 
to the  Unseen  in  quiet  confidence  and  deathless  hope. 
Read  again  the  beautiful  words  in  which  he  dedicated  his 
memorial  tablet  in  the  Auditorium  to  Mrs.  James:  "To 
the  fair  memory  of  Anna  Margarethe  Lange,  wife  of 
Edmund  J.  James,  fourth  President  of  the  University  of 
Illinois,  her  husband  dedicates  this  tablet,  thankful  for  his 
happiness,  sorrowing  for  his  loss,  hoping  steadfastly 
through  God's  mercy  to  meet  her  again  when  the  night  is 
past  in  the  perfect  and  unending  day." 

"Through  love  to  light !  Oh  wonderful  the  way 
That  leads  from  darkness  to  the  perfect  day ! 
From  darkness  and  from  sorrow  of  the  night 
To  morning  that  comes  singing  o'er  the  sea. 
Through  love  to  light !  Through  light, 

O  God,  to  thee, 
Who  art  the  love  of  love,  the  eternal  light 

VI 

President  James  was  a  noble  spirit.  He  made  more 
real  to  us  duty,  fellowmen,  love,  God,  immortality. 
Thanks  be  to  God  for  such  a  life!  Like  many  of  you, 
when  I  heard  of  his  passnig  I  cried  out  like  one  of  old, — 
"My  father,  my  father,  worth  chariots  and  horsemen  to 
Israel!" 

Call  him  not  dead  when  he  has  gone  into  the  coming 
of  the  everliving. 


-{16}- 


President  David  Kinley 

I  would  speak  a  word  of  tribute  to  Dr.  James  as  a 
leader  and  a  friend.  It  is  not  necessary,  even  if  there  were 
time,  to  recite  his  achievements.  They  are  known  to  all 
men  who  are  acquainted  with  the  leaders  of  thought  and 
public  life  for  the  past  fifty  years.  They  can  be  read  in 
the  histories  and  other  chronicles  of  the  work  of  the  leaders 
of  men.  Yet  an  appreciation  of  him  as  a  leader  and  a 
friend  is  possible  only  as  we  picture  in  our  minds  the  bril- 
liant and  scenic  character  of  his  great  career.  A  student 
at  Northwestern,  a  graduate  of  Harvard,  he  was  not  con- 
tent to  stop  his  formal  education  on  the  plane  afforded  by 
the  facilities  which  then  existed  for  higher  education  in 
this  country.  So  he  sought  further  formal  education  which 
led  him  to  the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Philosophy  at  the 
renowned  University  of  Halle.  While  a  student  there  he 
met  his  wife,  the  woman  who  was  to  make  so  great  an 
impression  on  his  life  and  career  and  who  endeared  herself 
to  hundreds  of  us  here  during  her  all  too  short  stay 
among  us. 

Returning  to  this  country,  Dr.  James,  in  keeping  with 
his  temperament  and  ideals,  took  the  first  opening  for 
service  that  came  to  him  and  became  Principal  of  the 
Evanston  High  School.  Later  he  became  Professor  of 
Public  Finance  and  Administration  and  Director  of  the 
Wharton  School  of  Finance  and  Economics  of  the  Univer- 
sity of  Pennsylvania.  Indeed,  he  was  its  organizer  and 
directed  its  destinies  for  twelve  years. 

About  1884  he  visited  Europe  as  an  educational  agent 
of  the  American  Bankers'  Association  and  made  a  report 
on  commercial  education  which  was  so  great  in  its  concep- 
tion, so  far  reaching  in  its  vision,  so  thorough  in  its  com- 
prehension, that  it  caught  the  attention  of  the  business 
men  and  educators  of  the  country  and  laid  the  foundation 

{ 17  > 


for  that  great  expansion  of  higher  commercial  education 
which  has  taken  shape  in  the  past  forty  years  in  schools 
and  colleges  of  commerce.  The  report  was  a  masterpiece 
of  analysis  and  prophetic  vision. 

After  leaving  the  University  of  Pennsylvania,  Dr. 
James  spent  five  years  at  the  University  of  Chicago  as 
Professor  of  Public  Administration  and  Director  of  Exten- 
sion. He  left  that  position  to  become  President  of  our 
sister  institution,  Northwestern  University,  where  he  pre- 
sided for  two  years.  It  was  then  the  good  fortune  of  the 
University  of  Illinois  to  secure  his  services,  in  1904.  To 
this  audience,  certainly,  it  is  not  necessary  to  recount  the 
work  and  achievements  of  his  great  career  here.  He  set 
new  standards  of  scholarship,  inspired  new  enthusiasm  for 
the  higher  scholarship,  gave  new  dignity  to  the  scholarly 
life,  and  new  enthusiasm  to  students'  ambitions.  He 
raised  the  standard  of  the  work  of  our  professional  schools 
and  put  the  University  in  its  place  among  the  scholarly 
institutions  of  the  land,  so  that  it  was  recognized  by  its 
associates  which  had  developed  the  higher  grades  of  Uni- 
versity work  as  deserving  a  place  in  their  ranks.  He  re- 
organized the  work  offered  for  higher  degrees,  particularly 
the  doctor's  degree,  reconstructed  the  Graduate  School, 
making  it  a  separate  group,  and  giving  its  work  an  impetus 
that  led  the  University  of  Illinois  into  recognition  as  one  of 
the  great  graduate  institutions  of  the  country.  He  threw 
the  weight  of  his  great  influence  to  the  strengthening  of 
the  spirit  and  ideals  of  culture  as  well  as  of  scholarship;  of 
learning  as  well  as  of  research;  of  the  perfection  of  the 
scholarly  life  as  well  as  of  the  rugged  strength  of  the 
pioneer  searcher  after  truth. 

In  all  his  spheres  of  activity ;  in  every  one  of  his  varied 
lines  of  service,  he  stood  conspicuous  for  his  gift  of  leader- 
ship, his  higher  standard  of  work  and  achievement,  his 
vision  and  his  ideals  of  social  service. 

We  need  not  emphasize  his  insistence  on  high  stand- 
ards of  life,  of  learning,  of  scholarship.  It  is  known  to  all  of 
us.  His  aim  was  always  the  common  good  by  the  improve- 
ment of  educational  standards,  the  wider  recognition  of 


scholarship,  the  greater  intensiveness  of  research.  Through 
the  dust  of  conflicting  selfish  aims  and  fashions  of  men 
he  had  a  constant  vision  of  the  far-off  perfection  that 
is  described  as  the  common  weal.  Individual  ambition  and 
individual  success  were  but  means  to  that  end,  the  service 
of  men  and  the  service  of  God.  His  educational  standards 
were  fixed  with  that  goal  in  view. 

President  James  had  a  special  gift  for  what  is  called 
promotion  and  publicity.  This  is  only  another  way  of 
saying  that  he  dreamed  dreams  and  saw  visions  of  the 
possibilities  for  the  improvement  of  education  and  of 
human  life  that  do  not  come  to  the  ordinary  man.  In  his 
ability  to  see  the  castles  yet  to  be  built,  and  the  wonders 
yet  to  be  in  education  and  in  the  service  of  men  through 
education,  he  had  no  equal.  This  special  gift  included  the 
ability  to  win  the  confidence  of  people  in  support  of  his 
plans. 

President  James  was  patient  under  criticism  and  had 
the  great  gift  of  turning  it  into  helpfulness  and  the  critics 
into  friends.  He  was  wise  enough  to  keep  his  own  counsel, 
taking  into  his  confidence  only  those  whom  he  could  im- 
plicitly trust. 

I  can  not  do  better  today  than  to  repeat  the  words 
which  I  spoke  to  him  twelve  years  ago  this  month  when 
the  staff  of  the  University  saluted  him  at  the  close  of  his 
first  ten  years  of  service  here.  I  said  then,  "His  have  been 
large  and  far-reaching  plans.  He  has  seen  the  vision  and 
has  dreamed  the  dream.  He  has  planned  largely  and  asked 
largely  .  .  .  With  infinite  patience  and  kindly  tact  and 
wisdom  he  has  met  and  solved  difficulties  and  opposition 
and  has  overcome  obstacles  ...  In  all  that  makes  a  man 
a  great  and  successful  university  president,  Edmund 
James  has  met  the  test,  step  by  step,  through  the  years  he 
has  been  with  us,  raising  the  University  to  an  even  higher 
level  of  work  and  reputation."  This  estimate  of  the  first 
decade  of  his  activity  here  describes  the  remaining  years  of 
his  service  equally  well.   Now  I  say  to  him,  as  he  watches 

-{ 19  y 


us  from  the  top  of  the  highest  hill  of  life,  as  I  said  then  on 
his  ten  year  level  of  accomplishment : 

The  foothills  of  the  mountain  range 

Sweep  downwards  to  the  green ; 
And  who'd  plant  truth  on  the  mountain  top 

Must  climb  the  hills  between ; 

O'er  range  on  range,  up  peak  on  peak, 

His  toilsome  path  pursue, 
And  on  each  peak  his  beacon  light, 

While  he  plans  his  work  anew. 

The  light  from  the  beacon  on  each  hill 

In  widening  circles  sweeps, 
And  evil,  ignorance  and  fear 

Are  swept  from  plain  and  steeps. 

Then  up  to  the  light  walk  the  children  of  men, 
O'er  the  way  that  the  leader  has  trod, 

Where  o'er  torrent  and  crag  and  peak  he  has  blazed 
A  path  to  the  City  of  God. 

Such  Edmund  James,  is  the  way  you  have  walked 
Through  the  years  of  your  dwelling  time  here, 

As  up  the  hills  of  knowledge  you've  led 
With  courage,  wisdom  and  cheer. 

I  give  you  greeting,  Edmund  James, 

In  the  name  of  the  women  and  men 
Who've  walked  through  dark  and  light  with  you, 

And  know  you  a  leader  of  men. 

His  work  is  not  done.  The  initial  impulses  which  he 
gave  are  finished.  But  through  generations  to  come  the 
influence  of  his  great  mind,  his  great  heart,  will  be  felt  in 
the  life  of  the  University  of  Illinois  and  the  people  of 
America. 


<™y 


{Music  §ttn3  at  tlj£  §etmtts 

Double  Quartet 

Mrs.  Lloyd  Morey  Mrs.  F.  W.  Hoffmann 

Miss  Mary  Hartley  Miss  Donnabelle  Fry 

Mr.  H.  M.  Heberer  Mr.  R.  I.  Shawl 

Mr.  R.  R.  Hoelscher  Mr.  D.  A.  Grossman 

Professor  Lloyd  Morey,  Director 
Director  Frederic  B.  Stiven  at  the  organ 

For  All  The  Saints 

For  all  the  saints,  who  from  their  labors  rest, 
Who  thee  by  faith  before  the  world  confessed, 
Thy  name,  O  Jesus,  be  forever  blessed, 
Hallelujah,  Hallelujah! 

Thou  wast  their  rock,  their  fortress,  and  their  might ; 
Thou,  Lord,  their  captain  in  the  well-fought  fight ; 
Thou,  in  the  darkness  drear,  their  one  true  light. 

O  blest  communion,  fellowship  divine ! 
We  feebly  struggle,  they  in  glory  shine ; 
Yet  all  are  one  in  thee,  for  all  are  thine. 

The  golden  evening  brightens  in  the  west ; 
Soon,  soon  to  faithful  warriors  comes  thy  rest ; 
Sweet  is  the  calm  of  Paradise  the  blest. 

— W.  W.  Hozv 

Trust  In  The  Lord 

(Sung  to  "Largo"  from  "Xerxes"  by  Handel) 

Trust  in  the  Lord,  His  name  we  ever  bless, 

In  grief  and  happiness,  With  one  accord, 

He  orders  all  our  ways,  To  Him  ascend  our  lays 

In  praise  and  pray'r 

Until  our  journey's  end, 

O  Lord,  our  souls  defend,  With  watchful  care. 

-{  21  }- 


Lead  Kindly  Light 

(Sung  at  the  Funeral  of  Mrs.  James  in  1914) 

Lead,  kindly  Light,  amid  th'  encircling  gloom, 

Lead  thou  me  on ! 
The  night  is  dark,  and  I  am  far  from  home ; 

Lead  thou  me  on ! 
Keep  thou  my  feet;  I  do  not  ask  to  see 
The  distant  scene ;  one  step  enough  for  me. 

I  was  not  ever  thus,  nor  prayed  that  thou 

Shouldst  lead  me  on ; 
I  loved  to  choose  and  see  my  path ;  but  now 

Lead  thou  me  on ! 
I  loved  the  garish  day,  and,  spite  of  fears, 
Pride  ruled  my  will.  Remember  not  past  years  ! 

So  long  thy  power  hath  blest  me,  sure  it  still 

Will  lead  me  on 
O'er  moor  and  fen,  o'er  crag  and  torrent,  till 

The  night  is  gone 
And  with  the  morn  those  angel  faces  smile, 
Which  I  have  loved  long  since,  and  lost  awhile ! 

— John  H.  Newman 


Nunc  Dimittis 

Lord,  now  lettest  thou  thy  servant  depart 

in  peace  according  to  thy  word.  Amen! 


.{22y 


iKesoIuf  Ion  of  tlj£  ajoarti  of  ©rttst^s 

After  a  long  period  of  poor  health  President  Emeritus 
Edmund  Janes  James  has  passed  away.  God  in  his 
wisdom  has  called  him  home.  His  death  brings  a  sense  of 
personal  loss  to  thousands  of  students  who  passed  through 
the  University  in  his  administration  as  well  as  to  thou- 
sands of  other  fellow  citizens  and  friends  in  the  State 
and  Country.  His  great  work  in  the  cause  of  higher  educa- 
tion and  particularly  in  the  University  of  Illinois  is  a  con- 
tribution to  the  educational  life  and  history  of  the 
Country  that  will  permanently  endure.  He  will  live  not 
only  in  the  memory,  but  in  the  affections,  of  all  who  are 
interested  in  the  great  cause  of  education. 

We,  his  official  colleagues,  with  grateful  remembrance 
of  him  personally  and  high  regard  for  his  great  work  at 
the  University,  hereby  place  our  appreciation  on  record 
by  this  resolution.  We  express  our  common  sorrow  at  his 
loss  and  our  deep  sympathy  with  the  members  of  his 
family,  who  mourn  his  passing  away.  Therefore  be  it 

Resolved  that  the  above  expression  of  appreciation 
and  sympathy  be  entered  upon  the  records  of  the  Board  of 
Trustees  as  a  testimony  of  their  high  appreciation  of  Dr. 
James  personally  and  officially  and  that  a  copy  of  this 
resolution  be  sent  to  the  family. 

June  26,  1925 


i  23  }- 


^solution  of  tljs  Cotmrfl  nf 
Abmmtsf  ration 

The  members  of  the  Council  of  Administration  of  the 
University  of  Illinois  have  learned  with  deep  sadness  of 
the  death  of  Edmund  Janes  James,  President  Emeritus 
of  the  University,  on  June  17th.  They  desire  here  to 
express  their  lasting  admiration  of  the  nobility  of  his 
character  and  their  appreciation  of  his  remarkable  contri- 
butions to  the  reorganization  and  upbuilding  of  the  Uni- 
versity during  the  sixteen  eventful  years  of  his  presidency. 
They  would  record  their  sense  of  abiding  obligation  to  him 
for  continuing  inspiration  and  most  resourceful  leadership. 

From  the  frequent  contacts  and  intimate  associations 
between  him  and  his  Council,  there  grew  up  the  highest 
admiration  for  his  fine  educational  statesmanship,  for  his 
far-reaching  plans  for  this  University  to  which  he  gave 
his  best  talents  unstintedly,  for  his  firm  insistence  upon 
the  best  standards  of  individual  and  departmental 
efficiency  in  teaching  and  in  scholarship,  and  for  his 
aggressive  spirit  of  public  service.  Six  generations  of  Uni- 
versity men  and  women  are  richer  for  his  revelation  of 
strength,  purposefulness,  imagination,  wisdom  and 
generosity. 

The  members  of  the  Council  extend  to  his  family  their 
deepest  sympathy  and  direct  the  Secretary  to  enter  this 
memorandum  upon  the  Minutes  of  the  Council. 

Thomas  Arkle  Clark 
Secretary 
June  20,  1925 


4  24  y 


WLe&alntxtm  of  tlje  Umusrsitij  §£ttate 

The  members  of  the  University  Senate  desire  to 
record  their  deep  sorrow  at  the  death,  on  June  17th,  of 
Edmund  Janes  James,  President  of  the  University  from 
1904  to  1920. 

The  presidency  of  Dr.  James  marks  an  epoch  in  the 
history  of  the  University.  His  vision  of  university  ideals ; 
his  understanding  and  love  of  scholarship  and  learning 
found  expression  in  strengthening  various  departments 
and  in  reorganizing  advanced  and  professional  work 
throughout  the  university.  All  who  were  familiar  with  his 
conception  of  the  place  and  function  of  a  library  in  the  life 
of  a  university;  of  his  constant  endeavor  to  enlarge  and 
enrich  its  resources  and  his  keen  interest  in  having  it 
adequately  housed  and  centrally  located  will  regret  that 
his  life  was  not  prolonged  that  he  might  see  the  partial 
completion  of  the  building  on  the  site  of  his  choice. 

His  life  and  work  at  Illinois  have  made  his  fame 
secure  as  an  outstanding  university  president  and  a  great 
leader  in  higher  education  in  the  United  States. 

Resolved  :  That  we  extend  our  deepest  sympathy  to 
his  family ;  and  that  this  memorandum  be  entered  on  the 
records  of  the  Senate. 

H.  J.  Barton 

Secretary  of  the  Senate 

June  20,  1925 


i  ^  y 


't-Linuia-uMHANA 


3  0112  082296317 


